


BONDED

by jazzyxwrites



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Dominant Henry Cavill, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fantasy, Forced Marriage, Forced Relationship, Henry Cavill - Freeform, Henry Cavill is gorgeous, James Corden - Freeform, London, Marriage Contracts, Marriage Law Challenge, Original Character(s), Romance, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Strangers to Lovers, slow-burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-30
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:41:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26737543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jazzyxwrites/pseuds/jazzyxwrites
Summary: IINSPIRED BY "THE LOBSTER " "The Good Place"In an alternative universe where the UK was heavily influenced by a war population has decreased immensely. To counter this  each and every person has a "soulmate" assigned for them by the government upon taking several "tests", (personality, aptitude, preference etc), then are matched and required to live together for a year and hopefully produce children. Alec Marsters has a great life until one day a letter informs him that his"match" has been found, a certain Mara Lawrence. Upon seeing her.. He is CERTAIN a big mistake has been made and this couldn't possibly be his match..Or could she?VISUAL: ALEC LOOKS LIKE HENRY CAVILL IN A SUITP.s. I live in the Netherlands so that is why I chose my country as the one THE UK fought with.Randomly thought of "Anderson Cooper" as the law firm Alec (Henry Cavill's character works at because I thought of the journalist Anderson Cooper. The surname Marsters is a tribute to Buffy the Vampire Slayer actor : James Marsters.
Relationships: Henry Cavill - Relationship
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In an alternative universe where the UK was heavily influenced by a previous war population each and every person has a "soulmate" assigned for them by the government upon taking several "tests", (personality, aptitude, preference etc), then are matched and required to live together for a year and hopefully produce children. Alec Masterson has a great life until one day a letter informs him that his"match" has been found, a certain Mara Lawrence. Upon seeing here.. He is CERTAIN a big mistake has been made and this couldn't possibly be his match..
> 
> Or could she?
> 
> VISUAL: ALEC LOOKS LIKE HENRY CAVILL IN A SUIT
> 
> P.s. I live in the Netherlands so that is why I chose my country as the one THE UK fought with.  
> p.s.2: Randomly thought of "Anderson Cooper" as the law firm Alec (Henry Cavill's character works at because I thought of the journalist Anderson Cooper  
> Ps3: I need to find a job but instead I keep writing.. Hope you like this!
> 
> PLEASE: if you enjoy my stories please donate.. https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Bailloo2207

*****************

Alec Masters had a good life. Born into a loving, wealthy family, he had lacked for nothing when he was younger. He got along well with his 4 brothers and his parents and was popular in school, not only in general but also among the ladies. The boys were jealous of him. Besides looking like a Greek God with his tall stature; curly brown hair and bright blue eyes he was also intellectually blessed. Exams were a breeze for him and it was therefore no surprise for everyone when he passed with flying colours.

He went to study law and also completed this training with ease, he did an internship at Anderson & Cooper and immediately got a job there. It paid well and he soon bought a beautiful loft in London's trendy Whitechapel district.

In terms of love, he had many short flings with many women but none of them were really serious as Alec quickly tired of the lady in question and still preferred to be single (read going after the women). So, he fell into one relationship to another, including with the it-girl / model of the month, without really finding stability and settling down.

However, the years passed more and more and it started to itch somewhere, especially since one friend after another got married. He was aware of the “Love law", the law that stated that everyone should marry his or her ultimate soulmate but did not believe in it and thought that HE, as a lawyer, could take measures against it.

Alec had taken a stupid personality test on behalf of the government ten years ago, only because he was required, but thought that nothing would come out of it and as the years went by; the fact that he didn’t hear anything only seemed to collaborate that notion.

Until one day he comes from work to find a letter, sealed with the mark of the Ministry of Interpersonal relations. 

***********

_Dear Mr. Masters,_

_We are delighted to have found your match based on your personality, aptitude and preference tests that you took ten years ago. Her name is Mara Lawrence, 28, who lives in Leeds and works as an investigative reporter._

_Miss Lawrence has also been informed of the match between you and her._

_It is required that you will meet with up in the nearest future. We understand that that might be difficult, read awkward to get to know each other so therefore we have organized a "meet & greet" on Tuesday the 28th of February._

_On this day you will meet Mara and we’ll provide you with information about the one-year "trial period" where you and Mara will live together in one home. If after a year there is no match and no pregnancy has come about, you can both entitled to cancellation of the agreement._

_It is extremely important that you show up on match day. We would like to remind you that participation is mandatory and…_

There was more but Alec could NOT READ any further for he began to stare at the letter with shock. NO. NO. This wasn’t HAPPENING, not now. He was going to get promoted very soon; he had no time for this.

Time for one-night stands, yes. for mandatory relationships dictated by the government, no.

It was ridiculous really. how could the government expect HIM to live with a complete stranger for a year, let alone sleep with her and expect a baby. He was aware that the war with the Netherlands five years ago had a major impact on the population and figures had fallen sharply. The government encouraged people to get married as soon as possible and the government encouraged them to have children.

The morning after he immediately went to consult his bosses, Walter Anderson and William Cooper. They read the letter and then had then shook their heads.

“I am sorry, my boy but there is going you can’t do about this”, Mr. Anderson said. He was nearing his 70s but still had an unbelievably sharp intellect and had many years of experience. One could be fooled by his kind demeanour and friendly disposition but it would be foolish to underestimate him. The man was a pit-bull in court, often successful and always out to get the best possible outcome.

“You can challenge this law by now but then you would get bogged down in years of litigation. Honestly it is not worth, it is better to just go with what they want and get things over with”, Mr. Cooper said.

He was slightly younger than Walter, had brown eyes and was a lot shorter than his colleague. However, he always looked great in his tailored suits and his (dyed) hair was always straightened back. His specialty was corporate law and he assisted various, "bad" or not, companies in the lawsuit, most recently EXCOM, a company suspected of having evaded millions in tax.

Alec left the boardroom with a gloomy disposition, hoping a solution could be found somewhere. But there was nothing else to do, he HAD to abide by the rules otherwise he could get a criminal record and as a solicitor he was not keen in getting one.

On a foggy Tuesday afternoon in February, Alec went to the "Interpersonal Relations Building" in London. He walked up to the desk where a friendly receptionist, about 50, with blond hair and red lips pursed, and wearing white glasses hanging from a chain, was sitting. Her name tag said “Linda”.

He stated his name and as to why he was here and Linda smiled at him and congratulated him at finding his “match”. Alec muttered a polite “thank you” before Linda brought him to a room and said that soon her colleague and his “soulmate” would enter shortly.

There he sat down; nervous, his gaze continuously on the door until he heard a knock. A bald man; dressed in a cheap brown shirt and black trousers, his name was Tom, judging from his name tag, and a woman walked in the room.

The latter looked shyly down before eventually gazing up and eventually resting her eyes on Alec. Immediately after of doing so, her entire face turned a bright red.

Alec's jaw dropped and he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Were they fucking serious? SHE? SHE? She was the one that was most suited with him?

He dated supermodels with legs from here to Tokyo for God’s sake and he preferred blondes. She was short, had brown hair and brown eyes, and well ... didn't look like a blonde supermodel.

_This was wrong. A mistake had been made. It had to be!_

The clerk, Tom, walked up to him and gently pulled Mara with him by her arm because she seemed like she’d rather just stay there instead of move into Alec’s direction.

"Alec, may I introduce you to Mara," Tom said. 

Mara reached nervously with her hand and said a barely audible “nice to meet you" and he could see that she still felt really uncomfortable.

Well she wasn’t the only one.

All Alec could do was stare at her hand for a while and then reluctantly shake hers.

"I'm Alec," he crisply said, not even hiding his disappointment in his voice and eager get out this room as quickly as possible.

_Away from this agreement_

_Away from this building._

_Away from her._


	2. The Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, I envisioned James Corden as "Tom" because I think he would be perfect for it.. Apologies if this chapter if it is too dialoguey but I felt like they should get to know each other better. Also.. I think it is clear that I am not from London myself and that will be apparent in the upcoming chapters so please bear with me also for shit grammar. Lastly, comments are deeply appreciated.

“Uh Tom, was it?” Alec asked.

“Yes”, Tom said looking at Alec curiously.

“Can... Can I talk to you somewhere privately?”. Tom had frowned his face in confusion and had said of course, glanced at an also confused Mara and said they’d be right back. They walked across the corridor to what seemed to be Tom’s office. It was small and bleak looking and on this desk there was a magnitude of papers, entry forms, Alec, scattered everywhere.

“Sorry for the mess, I wasn’t expecting visitors. Unfortunately, two of our clerks are sick so we need to do the processing of these forms ourselves”, Tom said as he walked towards his chair.

He pointed to Alec to take a seat, sat down himself and almost immediately after, folded his hands, looked down at his desk and then sighed deeply.

“I hate, _hate_ when this happens”, he grunted and he gripped his hair.

“When what happens?”, Alec wanted to know. Tom looked up and then stared intently at Alec.

“You don’t like her, do you”? he said with a slightly exhausted edge to his voice which suggested that this type of things happened more than often. Alec was not really sure what Tom was talking about but he did have an idea.

Alec did not know what to say. "That's not it". 

"Oh come on, do me a favour and lie to me please", sighed Tom.

Alec took a short break to answer and then started his defence uncomfortably.

"See... It is... It's just that... She's not my type," he said, a little embarrassed. "I mean. She looks nothing like my exes. I can't imagine she's my match".

Tom sighed again, which was something like the third time in three minutes.

"And yet, Alec, she IS whether you want to believe it or not. Look" and Tom started tapping his keyboard and then turned the screen towards Alec.

"Here, look. A 90% correlation between your entry forms and hers. How do you want to argue with that?" Tom asked and Alec didn’t answer, just looked at the big red number displayed on the screen.

"You score pretty much the same in areas such as intelligence, emotional intelligence, have similar preferences (stating that your match had to be living in or around London), you both love to go to the cinema and walk in your spare time, like the same bands, enjoy the same food. I know those things I just listed might be random BUT your socio-economical background may be different but you both grew up in a close family. Family is very important to you and you both are on great terms with your siblings AND you share the same values, the only thing you and her essentially differ on is sports, she isn’t keen on it unlike you.”.

“So. The only problem is probably that you don't find her attractive or am I wrong? ", Tom said in a somewhat accusing tone.

There was a short silence that became more uncomfortable with the second. Alec licked his lips, something he used to do when he felt nervous before answering.

"I don't see this going anywhere. I mean, maybe we are...", and he pointed to the screen "a good couple in theory but in practice" and he shook his head slightly.

" I'm not saying... I'm not saying she's ugly but my type is tall, blond and slim and... she is not".

Tom's mouth opened in slight aversion and he wanted to say something but Alec was ahead of him.

"I know it's a shitty thing to say" he said apologetically. "However, I think it is fair that I am honest with you and _her_. The last thing I want to do is lead her on. I... I really think there has been a mistake because. Since were are talking about preferences, I did note down “blond” when I entered".

"That may be true, but appearance is the lowest benchmark of our criteria’s as we consider a good commitment at an emotional level to be more important” Tom explained. Alec noticed how his face suddenly had hardened, gone was the amicable man from earlier so it seemed.

"Fine" he said and went through some folders to grab a form and gave it to Alec. It said "Dissolution of a commitment" and Alec stared attentively at it, inwardly screaming from happiness. There was a way out after all!

"Fill this in and we will offer it to the court" and Alec nodded happily. "I thought it was not possible to get out of the agreement" he said relieved and he smiled but Tom didn’t reciprocate.

"It wasn’t possible but there will soon be a change in the law we believe for these papers came to us yesterday. We are obligated to offer this option from now on", Tom answered coolly.

"However, I regret to tell you that, because of the delay of cases in our courts, it can take up to 11 months for your application to be considered” and there was the tiniest of smirks visible on his face.

" _Eleven_ months? But then, but that would mean that..." and Alec’s eyes blinked several times in confusion.

"By then the trial period would almost be over, that's right. I hate to say this but you're stuck with this arrangement for the time being. Sorry".

Alec couldn't say anything except to stare at Tom in annoyance, the latter mentioned looked at his watch and said that they had left Mara alone long enough already and that his next appointment would be in 10 minutes. Reluctantly Alec got up and walked back towards the meeting room where Mara was still waiting.

When they came in she turned around to them, first looking at Tom and then Alec and then got flustered. He saw that her eyes were big, that she was nervous and insecure, fidgeting at her hands... She wanted to ask Tom a question but withdrew it last minute.

Tom smiled at her and told them both to sit, shortly after he gave them both two folders, each containing information about the other such as youth, personal data, information about the trial period of a year and its stipulation and lots of other seemingly important documents.

Then he explained that it was wise that they got to know each other and handed them two vouchers for a dinner at _‘Draco's’,_ a trendy new restaurant where Alec had been before.

"I'm sorry I don't have more time for you. I really have to finish things up now and you two are expected at the restaurant. I suppose you have a lot of discuss for instance deciding on where to live during the upcoming year”.

Simultaneously they both answered that they would prefer staying at their place, then looked at each other somewhat confused and party annoyed.

“I can see that is going to be an issue. Don’t worry though I am sure you’ll be able to figure things out” Tom smiled and he got up.

“OH. Wait, my card.” and then he pulled open the drawers and gave Alec and Mara each one. 

“Should there be anything... " and he gave Alec a slight glare so it seemed "you can reach me on that number”.

" However, as you may have noticed. I'm a very busy man and I may not answer or call back swiftly. I will be in contact anyway, after three months, for scheduling the first evaluation. Well I have to go. Take care and good luck” he smiled, extend his hand, shook theirs and exited the room. 

They both stood there awkwardly and quietly before Alec said they should leave and Mara nodded shyly. They grabbed their coats and left and the friendly receptionist who was on the phone waved at them as they passed by. Outside they experienced another awkward moment as they both just walked but not in a certain direction.

"Wait, said Alec. "The restaurant is two blocks away from here. We are going in the wrong direction".

"Oh, ok, sorry... "she said skittishly and barely looked at him, they then turned around and She continued quietly until they arrived at the restaurant with the black canopy, the name written on it in gold... It was a good restaurant fairly new but already quite popular because it was a favourite among solicitors that went there to grab dinner after spending long hours at the court nearby.

They went inside and were quickly greeted by the owner, a tall man with dark blonde hair with piercing blue eyes and who seemed to slightly younger than Alec was. 

"Good evening! Welcome to Draco’s. I am... _Draco_ " he grinned before glancing at his clipboard; searching for the reservation.

"Ah... Here it is” and he tapped the place where the names and time were written.

“Miss Lawrence & Mr. Marsters if I'm correct? ", the young blond man with piercing blue eyes smiled.

She didn't answer, still evidently uncomfortable to even speak but Alec nodded briefly. 

"I will escort you to your table...if you would follow me' and he took Alec & Mara back to the restaurant's private area.

"Voila... Your own private booth, since this is your first date it is important that there are no interruptions.”

“Here are the menus. Can I get you something to drink in the mean-?”.

“A club soda and in advance a bottle of your Avignon please”, Alec immediately asked.

“Ah. Excellent wine choice for a celebration, I’ll make sure to get you two glas-“ Draco wanted to say before getting interjected again.

“No. The bottle is intended for me and me only” Alec replied hastily and slightly annoyed.

“OH” Draco stated; a bit puzzled at first but not wanting to let this on. “Of course” and then asked Mara what she wanted to drink and then left to fetch their drinks.

He looked briefly at his date and saw that she was hiding behind the menu as if she was very interested in the 'special of the day'. A very annoying silence returned and both did not know how to start. Alec sighed, this was going to be a very long evening.

"Their Andulusian steak with vegetables and red currant is very tasty here. Would recommend it" he said, trying his best not to reveal how bored he already was. 

"That sounds good" she said and "I think I'm going to choose that proceeded by the chicken soup" and without looking up of his menu, he nodded.

"Think I'm going to opt for the pumpkin soup and Chicken Alfredo ", he said half bored. Draco came back with their drinks and the wine bottle and took their orders.

Ignoring the Club Soda, Alec immediately went for the bottle of wine when he realised something, his faux-pais from earlier; acting rather rude towards her when they were ordering drinks. 

"Sorry, I was impolite just now. Has been a long day but ehm would you like a glass too?".

Mara bit her lip and said it was good and she didn't want any wine.

"So, Alec said semi-field "the letter said that you lived in Leeds but according to Tom we both said that we wanted to find someone in the London area".

"Oh. That's a mistake... Well, we are originally from Leeds but we moved to London in the 1990s. It is 20 minutes from Central London.", she explained hastily and took a sip of her drink to try to calm her nerves.

_This was so, so unbelievably awkward, she thought._ She would gladly have given someone her monthly salary so she could run away as quickly as possible.

"Ah, I see", Alec said, trying his best to seem interested but then decided he was going to have to continue the conversation to kill time.

"I understand you're an investigative journalist. For which newspaper or news programme?" he asked further and he took a big sip of his wine. She started fiddling awkwardly again and shifted on her seat, moving from left to right and backwards.

"No.. Wrong again” she said shyly.

“ I am a blogger and I do research on money laundering & malpractice by the government. A good example is the Excom case where it is rumoured certain members of Parliament are quite friendly with the company owners and are prone to taking brib - “.

He could not help himself but he had to interrupt her.

"Do correct me if I am wrong but ... you are basically an amateur journalist?", Henry asked but the question was uttered out a bit more condescendingly than he had planned and she seemed to get annoyed. The latter surprised him a little because she had acted so meekly the entire afternoon.

"It is not amateur journalism to me. I do a lot of research and talk to a lot of people and then post my findings on my blog or talk about them on my channel on YouTube".

He snorted when he heard that she had a YouTube channel and she gave him a glare but then said nothing and decided that the plate in front of her was much more intriguing.

  


“So, does YouTube make any money with the ads and stuff? How many subscribers do you have?” and he genuinely wanted to know this.

She flushed and it was clear from her reaction that it wasn’t many; to Alec’s amusement.

“52 at the moment. but I’ve just begun my chan-“.

Alec couldn’t help it but he right out chuckled this time and she flushed a deep red, remained silent for a moment before speaking next.

“You know what. This might be a mistake. I don’t think we’re a match, you know this don’t you and you and Tom had a discussion about it. Am I right?”, she asked somewhat accusingly.

Alec looked very uncomfortable and not eager to reply. She said "I thought so" and she grabbed her bag to leave but before she could he had put a hand on hers. Tasks back through his move Mara stared at both of their hands before he quickly removed his.

"Look. Sorry. I didn't mean to mock you and I also apologise for earlier in the afternoon. and for what happened in the afternoon. I'm sorry. I just wanted to ask if things went well but Tom assured me they did. Please. Can we talk further because I don't know if you have noticed but we have been watched all evening" and he looked in the direction of Draco who seemed to write something down but shortly afterwards he walked away when he saw Alec looking at him.

Mara had apparently also noticed Draco's sudden departure, she sighed, took a sip of her drink and then looked directly at Alec.

“So. You're a solicitor.", she asked upon which Alec nodded and said yes.

"What is your field of expertise?" Mara continued.

"Corporate law actually. I have a feeling I represent the same companies you investigate", he said with a smirk. Her mouth fell slightly open but again she said nothing.

"If all goes well I will soon become a junior partner at my firm, Anderson & Cooper", he boasted.

"Anderson & Cooper? But they represent...-" she asked in slight amazement. 

"Excom" and Alec couldn’t help but smile a tad sarcastically.

She shook her head and Alec asked what was going on while he poured his second glass of wine. She said there was nothing there but seemed to be a bit upset. A beautiful waitress that seemed to look she just got of the catwalk came to serve them their meals and Alec thanked her just a little too kindly and chatted a bit too long with her.

He didn’t see that his date shot them both a look of that can be described as “what is going on right now? Is he actually doing this?” but at one point he seemed to have noticed and he shifted his attention to his food and bid the waitress adieu before stating a "bon appetit" and beginning to eat. The rest of the meal went in silence until Alec broke it again.

"Tell me about your family, Tom said you had siblings?", he asked and Mara waited until her mouth was empty before answering.

"I have two sisters and one little brother. And you?" she asked.

"Four brothers of which I am the second born." he answered a bit bored.

"Wow, four brothers...I presume it was never very quiet in your home" and she smiled briefly at him, very briefly. Alec shrugged and said it wasn't so bad, he said that his parents were capable enough to keep all the boys in check and that had a nice childhood and still close contact with his brothers.

An uncomfortable silence returned and both were silent for a moment.

"May I ask you what you do for a living?”, Alec asked, and he tried his best to say it with the least disdain.

"I work for a small software company, founded by little brother. I am responsible for customer service but also sales".

"How old is your little brother?", Alec inquired.

Mara said he was 24 when Alec said "wow" and his head shook in approval.

"Clever little brother then" he smiled and it was the first time he smiled at her and by God, it was a beautiful smile and for a moment she didn't know how to react.

Not in a million years did she expect HE, of all people, to be her match, it was clear as day to her at least that he was out of her league. He was tall and had black curly hair and striking blue eyes, looked sharp and dressed great. 

"What do your brothers do?" she asked sincerely interested.

"Anthony, the middle child so to speak, works as a graphic designer at a marketing company. Daniel has a furniture business and owns a little store where he sells his custom-made pieces for a variety of clients. Dante, the oldest is a teacher at middle school and Matthew, our Benjamin, studies International Business Management. Currently he is taking an internship at the at the IBC bank in Munich.".

" Do you see them often?" she wanted to know and Alec said no but said that they did their best to be in frequent contact with each other even if they didn't see other much, because they scattered around England, but did group chat/video call frequently.

At this moment both of them were done eating and both opted for coffee only. The evening was drawing to a close but they still some things to discuss and agree on so Alec said it was a good idea to go through the folders Tom had given. He was partly done with the general chitchat if he was honest, he knew he should have asked about her family perhaps but at this point he wanted the evening to be over with.

Luckily for him, Mara agreed and they got the folders out and started reading the information in silence.

"Hhm. What did Tom say? An evaluation in three months' time? I can't find it anywhere, can you?", Alec frowned.

"Um, yes it is on page 21" she said lightly turning red and Alec turned to the corresponding page Mara had given.

For some reason, Alec found it necessary to read paragraph 3.1 out loud.

" Evaluation will be based on three aspects, emotional, interpersonal understanding and the physical aspect and in particular the sexual...-” but he didn’t not finish the sentence to spare them both the embarrassment. Mara had become even more red but fervently hoped that he wouldn't notice. "

“Well, right... enough about that. Now I know we disagreed in the afternoon but... I have just bought a new loft in the Whitechapel so I would be very happy if I could stay there. The loft is big enough for both of us, has an extra room for guests and also an extra bathroom. I know it would be inconvenient for you to move out but-".

"So I'll just have to give up my flat? And then what? How do I get back to a flat in London after a year, after this "experiment" has ended?", she asked indisputably. Alec sighed...

"I think we can arrange something. I can pay the rent and utilities if you’d like-", he suggested.

Mara shook her head and said she would, pay for her old flat if necessary. "So... we agree that we will stay together in my loft for a year" he said relieved and Mara nodded.

“It says here that we must move in together within 10 days. I suggest that we see each other tomorrow or the day after tomorrow to discuss the other details, then I will fix the guest room and you will have time to pack”, he concluded.

He looked at her and she seemed to have gone back to her earlier silent self and she looked slightly defeated and really uncomfortable again.

"I should probably get your number” he said and he took his phone to enter her data in and she did the same.

“Ok. Well, I’ll text you tomorrow to set up an appointment but for now... Do you mind if we wrap things up? It's been a long day". She wordlessly agreed by nodding her head again and Alec asked for the bill and gave the same waitress as before their vouchers. They grabbed their coats and walked towards the door and Draco was standing in front of it”.

“"I hope you had a pleasant evening and that everything was satisfactory" he smiled. They both smiled back and said that they did and they went out on the streets.

“Do you want me to walk with you to the underground?” Alec asked and Mara said he didn’t need to, that she had seen one nearby.

“OK then. I’ll text you yeah?”, he stated.

“OK. Goodnight” Mara said and she turned around and went on her way. He stared after here a couple of minutes, wondering what the hell he had gotten himself into and how on earth he was going to survive the upcoming year.

  


  


  


  


  



	3. Chapter 3:  The Move

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to say again. It is very apparent that I do not live in London (unfortunately. welll I wanted to be a journalist for the BCC at London but I won't spare you the stupidity of my actions in my youth that got me sidetracked). Please ignore any London related errors. Hope you enjoy. 
> 
> p.s. sorry for crappy grammar...

Alec had sent her some messages and she answered briefly, without going into much detail, saying "where, when" and so on. They had made a second appointment to have a final discussion and decided to meet at lunchtime. Their second "date" was with The King's Head; an ironic reference, because Alec felt somewhere that his "head" was at stake. It was a cosy bistro famous for its rustic dishes with large portions and a favourite with shopping and working London as it was close to a business park and a shopping centre.

Alec was there first; his case had ended a bit earlier and so he took the underground and two buses to the restaurant. On the way he could not stop thinking about how his life suddenly turned out. This was not foreseen in the cards and the whole thing came at an extremely unfortunate moment, he was working on his promotion and the last thing he needed was a relationship that was doomed to fail.

He was sunk in thought again until he saw her come in. It was obvious that she still felt uncomfortable as her face spoke volumes. She nervously walked up to him and greeted him with a timid "Hi".

He nodded to her kindly in response and she sat down, after she had installed herself, he asked her if she should go back to work. She answered that she should not and said she had the rest of the day off.

"Good. Then we will have extra time to discuss some things," he said resolutely, then a waiter came to take the orders. While they were waiting, the couple fell back into an uncomfortable silence. Alec had noticed earlier that she found it difficult to look him straight in the eye and that while talking to him she often looked over his shoulder, at something that seemed to be behind him. He did not like it somehow, it felt rude somewhere and it irritated him, he who was never too moved to tell people what he thought of them. A profession as solicitor could not have been more suited for him, not that he was sly to avoid the loopholes of the law, but because he could defend his arguments in a clear and concise manner.

She nervously took a sip of her coke and Alec wanted this afternoon to be over already, so he regained control of the conversation.

"Well, to get back to our previous meeting... We had decided that you' and he sighed without wanting to 'come and live with me'. Are you going to be able to move quickly? My guest room is fully furnished so you don't have to take much with you. And oh... Good news. There is financial compensation for those who move, maybe this compensation can help you with the rent of your flat".

"I won't have any trouble moving," she said concisely.

"Fine then I suggest that you come and see me the day after tomorrow and register at my address because that is a requirement..." She nodded briefly and he gave her his address, which she entered in her phone. 

"A few things about my flat... A cleaning lady comes by a few times a week to clean. I often do not have time to cook because I make long days, so I am often not there for dinner. When I am there I often go for sports or jogging. I am NOT often at home, I want to warn you in advance so then you have the house to yourself'‘, he concluded.

A flicker of irritation took place in her eyes, an emotion he could not name. She could name it, irritation about his arrogance. As if she was going to wait for him every day like a little puppy, SHE also had a life, friends, family to spend time with.

However, she did not feel like arguing, because this situation was shameful enough and, who knows, they were again being watched. Later... she might say something about his attitude. He seemed relieved that the conversation came to an end and the food arrived which they silently ate. He paid for the food, even though she said she didn't mind paying for her half and he remarked that he could easily pay for it, which inadvertently turned out to be patronising again. She muttered something that she would pay next time and he gave her a smug smile.

What a jerk, she thought. Was he gorgeous? Yes, he was... She had trouble looking at him because she noticed that at one point, she only BLEEFLED TO his blue eyes which were remarkable. His left eye was blue but in his right eye he had shades of green and blue which, in addition to his muscular body and black curls, made him stand out even more. Having said that, he had a Superman complex **_(writers note: hehe, note the Superman pun. Get it? hehe_** ) and seemed to feel superior. She got that feeling, maybe it was not nice of her to judge him straight away, but first impressions often did not lie.

They silently said goodbye to each other and went their separate ways. Two days later it was Sunday and time for the move. Alec watched from his balcony with a cup of coffee how a small van arrived and stopped just in front of the building. Two people got out, a tall man with black hair (he suspected her little brother) and Mara. Her little brother looked admiringly at the complex and said something to his sister which she did not like very much, as she turned bright red. A few minutes later he heard the bell ringing.

"Um... Hi... It's me Mara", she said "And Isaac", a male voice said cheerfully, and Alec sighed before he said he let them in over the intercom. 1 Year. Alec. You must keep this up for 1 year... Come on.

He opened the door and immediately a friendly looking man came up to him who held out his hand but then looked at Alec in amazement.

"Wow... You didn't lie, did you" he said to his sister and she gave him a deadly look, it seemed.

"Hiya. I am Isaac" he said, and he reached out his hand again. Alec said it was nice to meet him and Isaac gave him a friendly smile.

"Mara tells me you're a lawyer. Where do you work?" and he seemed genuinely interested.

"Anderson & Cooper. Not too far from here, actually," and Isaac said "oh, nice." 

"You're in the IT business if I understand correctly?" Alec inquired out of courtesy and a second later a big smile featured on the young man's face.

"Yes, that is correct, I am just getting started, it's going well so far... We are expanding our customer base".

Alec and Isaac engaged in small talk for a while before Isaac said they had to start moving now and asked where the guest room was. Alec led them both to the room in the back of the flat, opened the door and entered the room.

"Pfeeew... More like a mini suite. You're lucky, Sis!" he said with a grin to Mara who gave him another look that could kill her little brother at that moment.

Isaac understood the message, walked back to the hallway, and started carrying things. Mara seemed to want to get away from Alec, so she rushed to her brother. Once everything had been said in Mara's room, Isaac sat down for a while before he left. He gave his sister a big hug and said that she had greetings from her parents who were abroad and that he and Anya and Ela would visit him (Alec suspected that these were the other sisters).

Isaac gave Alec a firm hand and winked with a grin "Take good care of her". Mara seemed to be about to give her little brother a firm punch, but he rushed to the exit. And then there were two... Mara looked at Alec with a flushed face, feeling totally uncomfortable again and said that she was going to unpack and Alec said something like "Welcome and make yourself at home" and that he was going jogging. She looked down and nodded before going to her room.

He migghtttt have taken longer than normal and so he came back much later. It was also a strange sensation to suddenly have someone in the house. Alec had of course had “guests” over, but they never stay long, and even if they wanted to, Alec could usually get them out of the house quickly. He showered quickly and got dressed when he became aware that his lodge was noticeably quiet. Out of curiosity he went to her room, knocked on the door and said her name. When there was no answer, he couldn't resist entering the room, turned the handle and took a step forward. She was lying peacefully on the bed surrounded with what seemed to be empty boxes... So 'Make yourself at home' she had already taken to heart apparently, Alec concluded in his head. He gently closed the door and walked to the kitchen to prepare his lunch. A few moments later she walked in with her usual jittery disposition.

The kitchen was large and there was a sitting area adjoining a large white marble worktop with grey accents. The appliances were all in chrome and she could see that there were two ovens, a huge high-tech fridge (she thought this was quite big for someone who claimed never to cook) and the appliances were all in chrome. She could see that there were, among other things, two ovens and an immense high-tech fridge (she thought this was quite large for someone who claimed never to cook). He was making a sandwich but stopped briefly when he saw that she was entering but then continued.

She asked if it was all right if she could sit down and he answered with a "of course" and there it was again that irritating silence between them that seemed to last forever but it was she who broke it.

"I have... fallen asleep apparently... I didn't sleep well yesterday" she said in an apologetic tone which Alec thought was a bit inappropriate as he didn't care if his guest had slept well or not. He said that he understood and then, probably because his mother had stomped manners on him, he asked her if she was hungry and her expression changed her relief.

Speaking of his mother, by the way! In all confusion and the events of the past days, he had not even informed his parents yet. Shittttttttttttttttttt shittttttttttttttttt. But that was of later concern he thought…

"Would you like a cheese sandwich too?" and she politely replied with a "Yes please". He took a plate from one of the cupboards, made the sandwich and gave it to her before asking if she wanted something to drink. She wanted water so he went to the fridge to get a bottle of mineral water and handed it to her. When passing the water bottle, their hands were briefly in contact and she quickly retrieved it with a flush.

"I forgot to tell you something... I think it would be useful to do our groceries shopping separately, I order mine online anyway since I don’t have time often to go... This side" and he opened the huge fridge and pointed to the left " is mine. You can put your groceries on the right if you like". "You can cook if you want," he said, apologetically, because of saying earlier that he did not want his groceries to be on the same shelf as hers.

He briefly pointed out where the furnaces were, which was odd he knew, because she really knew what an oven looked like but he also felt uncomfortable at the moment and was overwhelmed by the absurdity of the whole thing.

"I often order food” he resumed “ and if you want you can pay me for your half," he said in passing and Mara nodded, of course she would do that and not expect him to foot the bill for what she wanted to order.

"When you've finished eating, I'd like to show you the rest of the flat" and she ate her sandwich and followed him. He briefly explained to her where the living room was and showed it to her, a room as tight as the kitchen. It had black leather furniture including a black dresser with some pictures. Mara saw a photo of Alec with his parents at his graduation ceremony and a photo of Alec and his brothers, all with a big smile. She wanted to ask him who was who, but Alec hurried them along, wanting to finish the house tour.

"I don't watch TV very often" Alec remarked and Mara wanted to finish the sentence herself "because I don't have time for that" but kept her tongue last minute.

"You can watch whatever you want here. I do sometimes work at the dining room table but... now that you are here... I will do that in my study"... Mara looked at him confused and he understood the blunder he had just made and quickly added "I wouldn't want to bother you", he said hoping his quick thinking had worked and she had overlooked his confession of not wanting to be around her.

She had not, but she took a mental note for later. He showed her the study in question but refused to do it in his bedroom but briefly pointed out where it was...

Hell, this was terrible... If someone could shoot him, please. He did not know who would sooner die of awkwardness, she, or him. Ok" he said. 

"I’m really sorry. but I had plans for today, I always go for a beer on Sunday afternoon with my friends".

"Oh, of course" with an understanding, awkward smile. They walked back to the starting point of the tour, the kitchen.

"Great, I'll get ready then. Um, if you get hungry" and he grabbed some leaflets from a drawer and gave them to her. "Red Dragon's sushi is really, really good" and Mara stared puzzled at the leaflets.

"Uh, I'm usually home late so..." he started but didn't finish it because he thought it was ridiculous that he had to tell her not to wait for him. He gave her one more, semi apologetic look and then quickly sped out of the kitchen.

When she heard the front door slamming, she went back to her room, sat down on the floor and finally gave in to the melancholy that had been bothering her all morning and afternoon and started crying loudly.

***********************************************

Alec was already working on beer number three when he felt a pair of hands on his back and heard a "Hey, buddy". He looked aside and saw Michael, one of his best friends, looking at him. They had known each other for a few years and had met at tennis and had quickly become good friends. Michael worked as a stockbroker and the blonde in his thirties looked just as impeccable as Alec. He had green, mischievous eyes, two dimples in his cheeks which were particularly noticeable when he laughed. Like Alec, he was loved by the ladies, but Michael thought it was time to settle down with someone but had not had any luck so far.

Alec gave his best friend a melancholic look and he started to chuckle.

"Come on... She cannot be that bad. You are surely exaggerating" Mike said with a grin.

"Don't pester him, Mike. Can't you see he looks miserable enough already?”. Alec glanced in the direction the sound was coming from and saw his other good friend Henry. He met his mates with a smile, stopped where Alec was sitting, put his hand on his shoulder and asked him how many pints he had drunk so far.

Alec replied that there could never be enough to which Henry laughed and shook his head.

Henry worked as an emergency doctor, often had irregular shifts but often tried to make time to accompany Michael and Alec, sometimes to the chagrin of his girlfriend Daisy, who also worked as a doctor in the same hospital. Henry was tall and muscular, as old as Alec, and had a striking appearance. As a son a white father and black mother he had got the best of both worlds, his skin was a beautiful shade of caramel and Henry inherited his father's blue eyes. He no longer chased skirts, unlike Alec, because he had been with Daisy for some time and had entrusted his friends to ask her to marry him.

They sat down at their regular table, ordered food and drinks and the interrogation could begin. The gentlemen were extremely interested to know who Alec's match was and he explained to them in detail how his life had changed immensely in recent weeks.

Once he had finished explaining, Alec shook his head and sighed heavily.

"I don't see this going anywhere. There MUST really have been a mistake. She is totally not my type, not in appearance but also not in personality. I am already irritated by her constant shy behaviour and that sometimes I must pull the words out of her. Not that I really care what she says but-".

Alec was interrupted by Henry who spoke disapprovingly to him.

"Dude. You are acting like a conceited prick right, not even properly her a chance. What are you doing here anyway? We could have skipped meeting up today...? I wouldn’t mind it and I doubt Michael would have” and Henry looked at Michael who nodded before continuing.

“Think about it. She's just moved to the other side of London and has to live with a stranger and instead of putting her at ease you're sitting here," concluded Henry. 

"Let me guess, you feel the same way?" Alec asked Michael. "Wouldn't it really be better to start the cancellation procedure? ".

"Dude. And then what? Do you have any idea how annoying that procedure is? I know you are involved in corporate litigation, but family law is really no fun. They take you through the wringer and reject your request, EXPRES, time and time again. A colleague of mine has been through it and now he is extremely sorry. What they do NOT tell you is that there is a negative annotation in your civil records, and they do NOT remove this annotation. You will have to deal with it for the rest of your life. Do you want another job? Forget it because from now on they will always look up your details. Do you want to buy another house? Forget it, save yourself the trouble. I also think it is too short to draw conclusions. There's a reason why you've been assigned to each other," concluded Michael.

"Basically, I'm stuck with her for a year, aren’t I?" sighed Alec and his friends agreed with him.

"Give her a chance... You never know, maybe something will happen between the two of you ", Henry shrugged. Alec nearly scoffed and wanted to tell his friend that that was impossible, but he refrained from doing so. Instead, he changed the subject and asked Henry when he intended to ask Daisy to marry him.

Henry grinned from ear to ear and said he already had a plan, but that Alec and Michael had to help him. They discussed the plan in detail, drunk, laughed and ate until Alec remembered they all had to work tomorrow and get out early.

"Not me. I don't have to work until tomorrow evening," Henry grinned, to which Alec replied that he was a lucky bastard. The friends said goodbye to each other, and Alec reluctantly went back to his flat. He hoped she was asleep by now; he opened the door, and his flat was shrouded in darkness. He walked into the hallway to the kitchen to drink some water. When he got there, he saw no traces of food, even if she had ordered she would have tidied things up neatly. He walked to the back of the flat and, for reasons unknown to him, waited a moment to see if she was still awake but no light came out of her room. Satisfied to see this, he went to his room, got dressed and got into bed.

Alec almost did not hear it, the sound seemed to be obscured but he did hear it regardless, the sound of her crying. He did not know what to do. He didn't know her well enough to comfort her or ask what was going on, although of course he had a suspicion. He remained in doubt for a long time until he made the decision and walked to the back. Again, he could not shake the influence of his mother on him, ingraining manners and instilling in him that a man should always be courteous. What good did it do him now? When he was near her room, he suddenly heard silence and hoped, at least that is what he really wanted, that she had fallen asleep. He waited in the hallway for a moment, convinced himself that his inkling was right and went back.

Alec went back to bed, where he soon succumbed to his fatigue, partly due to consuming too much alcohol. Once she suspected he was no longer in her vicinity and sleeping, Mara let her tears run free again.

_That night she could not sleep either._


	4. Chapter 4:  The Argument

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WRITERS NOTE
> 
> The granulite dumping mentioned IS NOT fictional. It has happened in The Netherlands and Dutch investigative journalism programme “Zembla” was indeed the one that first reported about it.

Monday came and the new "Soulmates" had been particularly awkward through the morning. Alec was drinking a cup of coffee in the kitchen when Mara walked in.

"Good morning," she said timidly. "Morning," he said back and added a short smile. It was clear from everything that she had not slept much last night and although she had done her best with her make-up, her face was red and puffy which seemed to suggest she had been crying.

"Um, sorry but I didn't run errands yesterday... maybe I should...' she asked again with that timidity which he gradually began to hate. He had no patience for it and certainly not today as he had a long day ahead of him; the start of a complicated case that would undoubtedly take months to prepare for.

"Oh" and he unknowingly sighed. "Yes, of course..." and he took some bread, butter, cheese, and jam from the fridge and gave it to her together with a plate and cutlery. Thankfully, she had not noticed his sigh just now, he really wanted to do it again but stopped himself last minute.

He never had much patience for introverted people anyway. He had been taught as a child to say openly when he did not like anything or to communicate clearly when he wanted something and the latter had helped him in his profession, as a lawyer. That mousy thing about her... He had nothing to do with it, even in his dating life he chose the ladies who approached him directly instead of the women who looked at him all evening without doing anything.

"There is coffee if you like" and he pointed to the machine on the sink and she said she was going to grab a cup of coffee later.

"Okay, I'll leave in a few minutes and I'll probably be home pretty late. So, um. you don't have to-". He did not finish the sentence because he realised that it might not be very hospitable of him explaining that she should not wait for him to come home.

"Um... I think it would be useful if we could exchange phone numbers, just in case," Alec said with difficulty. He didn't want to _have her number,_ but he had read in the "Soulmate" agreement that this was compulsory.

She briefly nodded, put down the slice of bread she was currently spreading jam on and grabbed her phone to give him her number and a moment later put his number in as well.

" Very well then. See you tonight... Oh... " and at that moment he cursed his mother instilling chivalry and etiquette on him when he was younger, but the question was out his mouth before he could stop himself.

" I am taking my car today; do you want me to drop you off at work?" Alec inquired to know.

She seemed to appreciate the offer but said it was not necessary. Alec did not want to show how relieved he was to hear this but still he kindly, perhaps too kindly, bid her goodbye.

He grabbed his coat and suitcase and went to the garage of his building; there his phone rang.

_PRIVATE NUMBER._

He did not normally answer these sort of phone calls, as he was sometimes harassed by some power company that wanted to make him a "SPECTACULAR" offer to switch but this time... he felt somehow drawn to answer.

"Mr Marsters?" asked the voice on the line.

"Yes, who is this?" asked Alec and in the meantime, he walked to his car.

"It's Tom, from the Ministry. I hope I'm not interrupting but I want to discuss some things with you.”

OH NO, Alec thought. What was going on?

"No, of course not, please go ahead." In the meantime, he had found his car, put his suitcase in the back of the car and sat down on the driver's seat.

“I won’t take much up of your time. Just wanted to know if it is indeed true that you spend last night with, the first night of you cohabiting together, with friends instead of with your Soulmate”.

Oh shit, shit. How the hell did he know? One thing was clear to Alec; he had vastly underrated this thing. one thing had become noticeably clear to Alec, he had underestimated this whole thing; he KNOWLED that they were checking occasionally, but he was so quick to do so?

"Yes... Sorry... Shouldn't I have done that? I didn't read anywhere in the agreement that I could not go out with my friends?”, Alec replied with a slight annoyance seeping through his sentence.

Tom laughed but his tone of voice was a lot stricter when he spoke next.

"Of course, you are free to meet with your friends, Mr. Marsters. I just wonder if it could have been better if you had skipped hanging out with them yesterday. It is essential that you and Miss Mara get to bond with each other, the sooner the better and maybe it would have been better if you had spent the evening with her.” Tom concluded.

“What am I supposed to do then? Spend every waking moment with HER? That is impossible and you know it.”, Alec wanted to know and this time he was getting genuinely annoyed.

"That's not what I am saying, Mr. Marsters, you are missing the purpose of this phone call. I am trying to _help_ you by _warning_ you. The first evaluation will take place in a few months' time and you preferring your friends over your Soulmate on the first night together will likely be discussed there. In detail. If you think I am being strict, just wait till you meet the Grand Jury of the High Court, they will have no qualms in extensively interrogating the both of you.”, Tom sighed.

“I usually don’t make these calls you know so. This is friendly advice, from me to you, to please... Please take this experiment seriously and do not, especially in the first weeks/months, give the Grand Jury ammunition to sanction you. For one, it will have consequences on the longevity of your career”.

Alec was silent for a moment until he understood that he had behaved like a jerk.

"My apologies, I appreciate that you called to inform me. Thank you, Tom. " Alec said.

"No problem and you're welcome. If I may give you a last suggestion. Do not inform Mara about this call. Let us pretend I never rang you, the last thing I want is to panic her. Well, have a nice day, Mr. Marsters " and he hung up.

After the conversation had ended, Alec thought for a few minutes about the conversation he had just had before glancing at the time in his car. Oh no, he was running late and there was London’s traffic to combat with as well. He started his car and drove to his work, not being able to shake the sudden bad mood he was in.

It was indeed late when he returned, around 8 o'clock in the evening. He walked to the kitchen to grab a beer from the fridge and glanced briefly into hers. Apparently, she had done some shopping because her fridge was full and there was a Tupperware with some, what seemed to be freshly made lasagna. Alec did not know why but he suddenly wondered if she … and yes upon looking at his fridge again he saw a similar Tupperware filled with the same meal that she had apparently left for him.

Oh, well that was... nice of her. He had already eaten at his law firm and was no longer hungry, but it was a nice gesture he thought. Alec walked through the adjacent living room and towards her corridor and saw that it was dark there save for the sounds and flashes coming from a TV in her room.

Hmm... Apparently, she had taken her television with her on her way back from work? That was odd to say the least. Alec had told her that she could watch in the living room but then he remembered that he had also said that he was often working there so maybe she did not want to disturb him.

_Sigh..._

He did not know what to do now. Go to her room to greet her? Ask her trivial questions about how her day was? Thank her for the lasagne? It was all so, so, confusing. He still had to get used to the fact that he now had a roommate he now obviously had be considerate of someone who according to some stupid compatibility test, was "the one". It didn't make any sense and he already felt, already yes, highly nostalgic for the time when he could do what HE wanted and with WHOM.

He knew it was childish, but he didn't feel like saying hello to her, so he walked back to the living room and turned on the TV. For a few minutes he heard her coming out of her room and she was apparently surprised to see him sitting there.

"Oh hi..." she said with a slightly blushed face. Alec nodded to her and courteously returned the greeting.

"Um... I left a bit earlier today to bring the last things I needed, and I also did some shopping and made lasagne... I left a container for you-".

"Yes, I saw thank you, but I already ate.".

"Of course," and nothing else came out of her mouth. At one point she realised that she was still standing there, without saying anything while she wanted to go to the kitchen.

"I, uh, wanted to... get a glass of coke... Out of my bottle of cola, in... in... my fridge. I mean. the one assigned to me because well this is your house, naturally. I don’t own anything... except maybe the groceries I bought today… which the cola is part of. That is not to say you can’t drink out of my bottle of cola, I mean you can whenever you want to. Would, would you like a glass too?”.

She realized somewhere faintly that she had mentioned cola five times in a sentence AND had totally missed that he had a bottle of beer in his hands and that her question was pointless.

He couldn’t help but smile briefly at her complete awkwardness and fumbling with her words before he replied.

"No, thank you" and he pointed at his beer.

"OK...then..." and she went into the kitchen and purposely took a long time to drink her glass, hoping her face would no longer look like a ripe tomato by the time she had to go back.

Somewhat calmed down she put her glass neatly in the dishwasher. She was planning to gently go back to her room and had already walked past the sofa on which he was sitting but then he interrupted her.

"Mara, can you sit down for a moment? he asked, and her heart immediately started pounding hard. She turned around and nervously walked to the sofa opposite him and took place.

He took a deep breath which fortunately she did not seem to notice and asked how her day had been. How had her day been? What was she supposed to answer? Good? It helped that her brother was the owner of the company as she could afford some privileges being the sister of and, for example, could leave a little earlier today. The morning had been uneventful anyway with some clients she called and some contracts she had to draw up, so she was able to leave after the clock had stricken two. She wanted to tell all this that but the only thing she uttered was that it had been “alright".

And there it was again; he couldn’t help it, but it crept up on him, an ever-growing annoyance he felt for her that he wished to ignore but could not. A conversation with her was as pleasant as having his teeth pulled out and now, he would rather do that than continue talking to her. But then he thought of Tom and his words and decided to show some effort anyway.

" That is... great.” He replied, internally wishing he had not asked her anything but then again. He had to make some effort.

“Well, I unfortunately can’t say the same” he said, and she just nodded. "We, my office has started working on a new lawsuit, a very delicate difficult and intricate matter. It will take months to speak to everyone involved.” he concluded. Alec had no idea why he was sharing this level of detail with her, maybe he wasn’t allowed to, but he had already started explaining so... he might as well continue.

"Ah I see", Mara said. At that point Mara realised that she had to answer something other than concise phrases and that it would be also wise to ask him about his work, out of courtesy, seeing as he initiated the conversation.

"What is the case about?” and she genuinely was curious, he could tell from looking at her.

"Well... It is about the presumable dumping of granulite in the soil and river near Bristol.".

Mara's mouth fell open with amazement. She had heard about this issue! Her favourite investigative journalism programme ZEMBLA had devoted several episodes to this topic, in fact, they had been the ones who had brought the story forward to the public. 

"Oh. That is fantastic. I assume that the citizens and the city officials have begun a lawsuit”, she asked for confirmation. Alec's nearly frowned but refrained at the last moment. For a moment he didn't understand where her enthusiasm came from until he remembered she was an amateur journalist.

"That's right" he said and had nodded while speaking. Hhhm, this wasn’t so bad after all, it was clear to him that she was well informed, and he enjoyed a good, friendly discussion from time to time. Maybe he could engage her in talking about different topics later, find out if they have things in common perhaps.

"So, your firm is representing the citizens and the city of Bristol, right?” she asked with a smile.

And just like that all hope for a civil disposition flew out the window.

His expression changed instantly, and he refused to answer and eventually something dawned on her. His firm was NOT representing the parties but the... government.

An awkward silence fell between them and Alec did not know which one of them was going to break it soon but eventually she did.

“Correct me if I am wrong... In addition to the ExCom lawsuit, which was about members of parliament taking tribes from a large multinational your firm is now also taking on the defence of a government _deliberately dumping_ potentially _cancerous_ waste in a river, which happens to be located next to a large city”, Mara wished to know and there was a slight tone of anger in her voice.

“The government did not know if the granulite in question was indeed harmful and- “, he started but she interrupted.

“Bullshit”, she said angrily. “Several of Kilkenny's officials indicated that they had doubts as to whether granulate was safe, but they were overruled by the people 'higher up in command', she spat out. 

"And. AND. There was scientific evidence that got ignored.’ she sneered. She shook her head.

"Honestly, I... I don't understand how you can work for a company that knowingly defends a corrupt government that deliberately puts its own citizens in - " but this time he interrupted HER.

"I'm only doing my job!", he shouted, frankly irritated by her accusation. Where did this come from again? He regretted that he ever wanted to know what her day had been like and preferred the mousy Mara instead of this fierce, pedantic one.

“Well, you should be SO PROUD!" she countered and that was it. His patience had run out, he was in no mood to argue with her nor was he inclined justify his actions for HER. He did not know her to begin with!

" Why do you CARE? It is none of your business, is it? Do you live there? No. You DO NOT. But maybe you are right. _Maybe_ I should become a customer service employee at my brothers IT-firm and pretend to be a pseudo-journalist in my spare time by starting a stupid YouTube channel that garners ridiculously few followers instead of being a successful barrister working at one of the best firms in London, if not the country. What a brilliant idea! Let me call my boss and send in my resignation promptly", he scoffed.

She was silent after his outburst and only looked at him with a hurt look, probably moments away from crying. Fuck. He had gone too far.

"You're right. It is none of my business. Who am I to say anything about your job or employer? My apologies” and she got up.

"Mara, I am-" he objected but it was too late, she had turned around and gone back to her room.

He took a big sip of his beer and thought about what had just happened. Fantastic... Great... Day 2 and they were already at each other's throats. Bloody hell.. He drank a couple of more beers and then retired to bed feeling even grumpier than in the morning. 


End file.
